Truth
by Chelsee6
Summary: What would have happened if Sara had answered Catherine's questions truthfully? My interpretation of what could have happened after 'After the Show'. Sara/Catherine. Femmeslash. Rated M only for language.
1. Chapter 1

**Truth**

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters nor do I own CSI. But when I do take over the world that will be the first matter of business I attend to, I assure you. XD. Unfortunately, for now, I own nothing and suing me won't do you any good because I'll win anyway; I included a disclaimer :).

Spoilers: After the Show, Catherine's first two lines are taken from this episode but I changed Sara's answers.

Thanks to Jess and Sarah for checking this over for me, you guys are the best.

* * *

"At every step one has to wrestle for truth; one has to surrender for it almost everything to which the heart, to which our love, our trust in life, cling otherwise. That requires greatness of soul: the service of truth is the hardest service…"

—Freidrich Nietzsche.

The only question which remains is, is it worth the risk?

--

"Did your father ever tell you you were pretty?" Catherine's blue eyes flicked up at her as she asked the question. For a moment Sara considered lying, but ultimately she decided that the truth might be a better option. Something about the older woman's voice made her feel at ease, which was odd considering their patchy relationship.

"No" she answered, glancing away.

Catherine was wrong footed for a moment, not expecting that answer. A moment later she was back on track, "He ever tell you you were smart?" Catherine questioned, her whole attention on Sara now.

"No" Sara answered once again, still refusing to look at Catherine.

"He wasn't around much when you were growing up?" Catherine queried.

Sara chuckled darkly, "No, he was around," she stated.

Catherine was confused, but she didn't know what to say, instead she focused on what she had been trying to explain to Sara. "My guess is Julie Waters father told her she was beautiful all the time, so she believed that was all she was good for; something pretty to look at."

"Right." Sara said more for the sake of it than signalling she understood.

"Your opinion of yourself is based on what other people tell you." Catherine continued. "My parents told me I was beautiful, and I believed them. It wasn't till later in life that someone else told me I was smart"

Sara chuckled morosely, "Well it's a good thing I didn't listen to everyone else then."

"What do you mean?" Catherine asked carefully.

"It doesn't matter" Sara retreated quickly, realising this was getting too close for comfort.

"Sara" Catherine reached out and places her hand on Sara's arm causing the brunette to look up at her.

Sighing Sara broke their gaze, "I mean if I had listened to my parents then I would have spent my entire life believing I was worthless, nothing. A piece of shit to be kicked around; treated like a dog." Her voice was full of venom causing Catherine's grip to tighten on her arm.

Catherine swallowed, scared at finding herself so out of her depth. She had no idea what to say as she and Sara had never been close. She winced as she remembered the harsh words that she had let loose on her over the years.

Suddenly Sara turned and met Catherine's eyes, her gaze icy. "If I'd listened to you I'd think I was a second rate CSI not worth the time of day. I'm just glad I'm stronger than that" and with that she left the room.

--

Catherine's mind was made up. She didn't care what this did to their working relationship, it could hardly get worse than it already was, and she gave Sara a little more credit than thinking she would get totally weirded over the fact.

So come the end of shit she was haunting the locker room; waiting for Sara. It was two hours later that Sara actually showed, long after most people had left and even Grissom had already gone home.

Catherine didn't mind, it gave her time to think through what she was going to say. She didn't want to rush Sara, and truthfully she didn't really want to have this conversation.

When Sara came in she didn't seem to notice Catherine, even if she had she probably would have ignored her. She would still be pissed off that Catherine had taken the case from her.

"Y'know, I think you should start listening to the people around you" Catherine started, knowing she had to start somewhere.

Sara whipped around quickly, her eyes widening at Catherine's presence. "What are you still doing here?" she asked, her voice not giving away any of the surprise she obviously felt.

"Waiting for you, we need to talk" Catherine responded.

"I have nothing to say to you" Sara answered coldly, turning back to her locker.

"Fine, then just listen. I didn't take the case from you because I thought you couldn't do it, I know you would have done just as good a job on it as I did. I took the case because Delhomme was more receptive to me; he was willing to tell me stuff he wouldn't have told you. If you were in my position I'd expect you to do exactly the same thing."

"So why didn't you ask me to help with the case?" Sara asked, shooting Catherine an accusatory glare.

"You were up for promotion, so was Nick, I needed someone without an agenda." Catherine stated tiredly.

Sara turned back to her locker, "You should know I never let my personal feelings get in the way of doing my job."

"You'd like to think so" Catherine parried. "Truth is Sara, we all do. Every single one of us gets affected by cases, it's the nature of the beast. You go off the deep end when ever you get a case with a hint of domestic violence and, after today, I can't say I blame you." Catherine let Sara know she had read between the lines of their conversation earlier.

"I wouldn't have let my feelings towards you stop me from doing my job." Sara insisted vehemently.

"I'll remember that" Catherine nodded, "But I also didn't want you distracting me."

Silence stretched between the two women. "Why are you here?" Sara asked eventually breaking it, a confused look on her face.

"Because…" Catherine began suddenly feeling her face heat up as her heart rate increased. "I wanted to tell you…you aren't nothing. You are beautiful. You are funny. You are kind. You're not smart, you're a fucking genius. You are passionate. You are determined. You're a brilliant CSI, and you should listen to what people say about you."

If possible Sara looked even more confused.

Catherine sighed in frustration, "Don't give me that look" she ordered, raising her voice.

"What look?" Sara frowned.

"That look; the one you're giving me. You're looking at me like you think I'm crazy." Catherine elaborated. "Sara, you know me well enough to know I don't say things I don't mean just for the sake of it, and I _certainly_ don't stroke people's egos because I feel sorry for them. I am saying these things because they're what I think. I'm saying these things because I think you need to hear them. I'm saying these things because I don't want you to think I hate you. The least you can do when someone pays you a compliment is say thank you"

"Thank you?" Sara echoed, still thoroughly confused. She had spent her whole life working her butt off to get some sort of praise from her parents. When that didn't work she had turned to substitutes, her teachers, neighbours, lecturers. She always strived for more because she didn't get the praise she wanted. Not until now. God, not even Grissom had been as nice as Catherine was just then. Sure, he had said similar things, but he had really only complimented her one her work; and once on her looks, sort of. But Sara had rarely had a nice word from Catherine. To have all of these strung together in one long paragraph was almost too much.

"Damn it Sara, why is it that when it comes to anything to do with work you always act like you were born with brass balls, but the moment it comes down to accepting a compliment on who you are as a person you shut down?"

"I guess I'm not used to it" Sara responded carefully, grabbing her things from her locker and closing it softly. "If this is how you really feel, then how come you haven't said these things before?" she questioned. That was the moment Catherine retreated, she dropped her gaze and unconsciously her shoulders hunched forward slightly. Sara observed the change in body language curiously.

"Because…I…" Catherine started. She sighed with frustration, turning away from Sara to stare at the lockers. "I figured if I kept you at arms length I'd be safe" she whispered softly, leaning backwards against the lockers. She could feel Sara's intense stare on her skin and she felt it start to flush red.

"Safe?" Sara asked quietly.

"Yes Sara, safe" Catherine looked up at her young brunette colleague. Sara swallowed at the suddenly vulnerable look in Catherine's eyes and suddenly she found it hard to move. "The first time I met you, you were investigating one of my best friends, but I found myself liking you. I didn't want to like you." Catherine confessed softly, her eyes holding Sara's.

"But then I wasn't, and I joined the team" Sara pointed out.

"Yes. And I found myself liking you more. Then Grissom asked you to investigate Warrick again, and I felt almost as though you had betrayed me by agreeing. Stupid I know. And I hated myself for it. I hated that feeling, so I pushed you away."

"Ok" Sara stated slowly, prompting Catherine to continue.

"Then there was Hank. And damn it Sara I was jealous." Catherine sighed explosively, breaking their gaze. "I was happy when you guys broke up, and I felt guilty as hell for that so I took you out for a drink. I guess that was when I worked it out. I like you Sara. And I just wanted you to know…" she raised her eyes to meet Sara's again, "You aren't nothing. You are beautiful. You are funny. You are kind. You're a genius. You are passionate. You are determined. You're a brilliant CSI…and you should listen to what people say about you" Catherine offered the stunned Sara a small smile before she lent forwards and brushed her lips against hers in a quick, chaste kiss, and with that she left the room leaving Sara staring after her.

A/N: Reviews would be much appreciated, and I'll hopefully post the second chapter soon. Thanking you in advance -- XX Chez.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: OK, so i'm not sure if this is really what you wanted but this is the way the muses anchanting song led me so...

thanks again to Sarah and Jess. You two are the best!

Thanks also to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, you guys rock. I know i didn't get the opportunity to thank you all in person...i will get around to that. Without much further ado, the next chapter if you please:

* * *

Chapter 2:

Catherine and Sara weren't given a case to work together for the next month; Grissom trying his best to avoid a dispute. He didn't know they had already had words over it. He didn't know what had transpired between them. Hell, Sara didn't know.

Every now and then Catherine would catch Sara studying her curiously and she would send her a smile causing the confused look to cross Sara's face once again. By the time Grissom finally deemed it safe to pair them together Sara had gotten used to the idea, in fact the thought of it brought a smile to her face. She was flattered.

Now, while working a case, Catherine would compliment her one a job well done. She didn't bother to pretend she wasn't staring. To Catherine's surprise when Sara caught her staring she grinned causing Catherine to smile. Sara's smile really was beautiful.

The change did amazing things for the team. Sara and Catherine were unstoppable now. Every case they worked together they solved. Both their personal solve rates, and also the team's solve rates, went up. They found they balanced each other perfectly, Catherine's people skills to Sara's analytical ones; Sara's determination and dedication with Catherine's common sense and reason.

The change was noticed by the guys in the team as well, Grissom happily paired them together on more cases. The guys became more relaxed in their presence, not scared that something was going to set them off into one of their arguments. Sara was, on the whole, happier and with Catherine watching her back she was healthier too. The older woman made sure that Sara ate during a long shift, and she insisted that she get some sleep. Sara grumbled but surprisingly she allowed the blonde to take charge. Now that she understood her motivation she didn't continually think that Catherine was trying to out do her, she realised she was looking out for her, and it made a nice change.

--

"Happy birthday Cath" Warrick beamed as Catherine opened the door dressed in her cotton pyjama bottoms and a singlet top. Behind him the rest of the night shift was standing on her front porch, identical grins covering their faces.

"We come bearing gifts and party food" Sara announced, "You going to let us in?"

"I specifically said I didn't want a party" Catherine sighed, stepping back and opening her front door to allow them through.

"You really thought we were going to ignore your big 4 0?" Nick asked grinning.

"I'd hoped so, yes." Catherine replied not able to wipe the smile off her face. "Like I need all of you reminding me how old I'm getting."

"At least you don't look it" Grissom chided, wrapping her in a one armed hug and kissing her cheek.

"Besides, we brought booze" Greg grinned holding up the bag he was carrying which bore the local bottle shop's name across it in bold letters.

"Well, in that case, come in" Catherine stated, only half sarcastically.

--

They were all sitting on the floor around Catherine's coffee table, Lindsey included, laughing and chowing down on the Chinese food and pizza they had brought, most of them sipping a beer or, in Catherine's case, a glass of wine.

"You got any more glasses Catherine?" Sara asked standing up.

"Sure, cupboard above the fridge" Catherine replied leaning back against the couch as she enjoyed the first opportunity she had had to eye Sara's body since she got here.

"Thanks" Sara smirked, fully aware of what Catherine was doing.

Catherine beamed as she watched Sara walking into her kitchen, noticing the extra sway in Sara's hips for her benefit. Once again she was grateful she had told Sara exactly how she felt. Sure things had been awkward for a time, but now they were good. Not fantastic, Catherine thought with a pang of wishfulness, but good.

"Pass the bottle?" Sara asked as she settled back to her spot on the floor.

"You've got the night off then?" Catherine asked as she handed her the bottle of red wine she had uncorked earlier.

"Yup" Sara answered, pouring herself a glass.

When they had finished eating Lindsey finally broached the subject of gifts, "When are you going to open your presents mum?"

"Now" Greg answered for Catherine as he scrambled to grab the bag he had carefully placed behind him.

Catherine smiled eagerly as she was handed her first present, the label saying it was from Greg. As she slid her fingers under the tape Greg handed the bag around so each person could get their gift out and hand it to her personally.

Catherine smiled as she crossed over to the CD player, placing in one of the CD's Greg had given her and pushing play. "They're a compilation mix thing" Greg explained. "Just a whole lot of songs to—broaden your musical appreciation" he smiled.

"Thanks Greg, they're great" Catherine smiled warmly.

Her next present was from Grissom and it was a book, one of the new thrillers that she had been considering actually bothering to buy, thinking she might get time to read it in the next ten years.

From Nick she received a pair of earrings and from Warrick a bottle of her favourite perfume. Catherine had saved Sara's gift for last on purpose. Of course, she wasn't expecting to receive what she really wanted.

Sara bit her lip as she handed her present over to Catherine, it was just a slim silver envelope, but she figured the blonde would appreciate it.

"Dinner at the Bellagio for two huh? In one of the private rooms?" Catherine was stunned.

"Yup, for you and whoever" Sara shrugged but her eyes never left Catherine's.

Catherine suddenly felt her heart flutter, she had to be imagining things. It had been almost three months ago that she had confessed her feelings for Sara, surely if she had felt the same she would have done something before now. "Pity I don't know anyone who wants to come with" Catherine remarked lightly.

"I'm sure you can find someone" Sara responded with a smile. "Just make sure it's someone you like."

Catherine felt a huge smile spread across her face.

"I'm sorry Catherine but it looks like we have to get going" Grissom stated getting to his feet.

"That's fine, duty calls" Catherine nodded her head, getting to her feet as well to see them to the door. "Guys?" she called after them as they crossed her front lawn to their cars. "Thanks for coming"

--

When Catherine returned to the living room she found Sara still sitting cross legged on her living room floor, only now Lindsey's head was resting on Sara's knee. "I think it's time for bed, don't you?" Catherine asked from the doorway.

"But mum, I was talking to Sara" Lindsey protested.

"You can talk to her another time" Catherine insisted.

"But Sara doesn't come over here, not ever" Lindsey whined.

"Well…how about Sara stays the night" Catherine suggested, her heart in her throat as she turned her attention to Sara. "That way you can talk to her in the morning, and I can talk to her now. And she won't have to fork out money for a cab."

"You sure Cath?" Sara suddenly looked nervous.

"Sure I'm sure" Catherine beamed at her. "If you want I can make up the guest room."

"Err…ok, I guess" Sara agreed tentatively.

"Great" Lindsey grinned enthusiastically. She wrapped her arms around Sara and hugged the surprised woman tightly, "See you in the morning Sara." She smiled.

"See you in the morning" Sara replied, still seemingly surprised.

Catherine was looking decidedly amused. "C'mon Lindsey, bed"

--

When Catherine came back down stairs after tucking Lindsey in Sara was staring into the middle distance looking thoughtful. "What are you thinking about?" Catherine asked sitting down beside Sara. Now that it came to it she was nervous, she didn't know what to do or what to say.

"You, us, Lindsey…Eddie" Sara sighed and sipped her wine, avoiding meeting Catherine's gaze. "That's we were talking about, me and Lindsey…"

"Oh?" Catherine enquired, a little confused.

"She misses him." Sara stated, staring at the ground. "When I was working the case…I told her about my own father, how he was killed when I was thirteen. She was asking me if I ever stopped missing him."

"What did you say?" Catherine asked with baited breath. She knew enough to know that this was the make or break conversation. From here she and Sara would choose one of two paths, either friendship, or a relationship.

"Truthfully, I don't think I actually ever missed him." Sara confessed. "I was relieved…the beatings stopped…he…he didn't…he didn't come into my room at night" Sara heard Catherine's gasp and bowed her head. "But…I told Lindsey I missed having a father.

Catherine found her hand was trembling as she reached out for Sara's. Finally the brunette met her gaze, offering her a sad smile in spite of everything. "Y'know, I never thanked you for that" Catherine whispered. "For Eddie's case. I know you tried your best…I wanted to thank you, for that and for kicking my ass when I needed it. And…also, I'm sorry for what I said that day. I didn't mean it."

"Yes you did." Sara whispered, "At the time you meant it, and you were right. I'm sorry I couldn't solve it." she whispered.

"You have nothing to be sorry for" Catherine protested vehemently. "No, I mean it Sara. You tried your best, and in your shoes I would have done the same thing"

Sara smiled, "Thankyou Catherine" she stated.

Catherine smiled back, noticing the indication of how far they had come since the Julie Waters case. Sara was now accepting compliments gracefully. "Well done" Catherine congratulated her, pleased. She liked to think that Sara's increased self esteem has something to do with her.

Catherine felt the smile leave her face as Sara fixed her with a serious look. "There's some things…some things I need to tell you" she started. "You need to know before…before we can try anything, ok?"

Catherine nodded gravely.

"I told you my father parents beat me. I told you my father used to…used to sneak into my room at night and…he used to…used to touch me" Sara struggled with the words, her eyes now steadily fixed on the floor. "I told you my father died when I was thirteen…my mother killed him…she stabbed him to death with a kitchen knife…and I was the only witness. I grew up in foster care…so…I'm not used to people caring…it…it might take me a while…to get used to this." Sara looked up at Catherine hopefully, "That is, if you still want to give us a go."

Catherine was shell shocked for a moment, she had never imagined that something so terrible could have happened to Sara. The younger woman always seemed so strong; how on earth could she bear that burden without it showing?

Sara mistook her pause as hesitation and reluctantly she pulled her hand away. She couldn't blame Catherine, could she? She was damaged goods. Messed up. No one deserved to have to deal with that.

"No, Sara." Catherine protested reaching out for Sara's hand again. "I do, I want to try this, us…I was just shocked, that's all. That someone could survive all that and turn into the wonderful person that you are." Catherine pulled Sara's hand towards her, placing a soft kiss into her palm. "I want you" she said seriously causing a red flush to colour the younger woman's cheeks. "Now, I need to set some ground rules. You already know that I like you a lot, so you probably know that I don't want just a fling. This has to be the real deal Sara. If you're not prepared to go the distance tell me now. I'm not saying forever, but I'm saying that might be a possibility" her gaze was serious and Sara felt her own hand start to tremble at the idea.

Once forever might have scared her and sent her running, but now the idea of forever, while still terrifying, was some how exciting; something to look forward to, maybe to aspire to. She nodded slowly. "I can go that distance" she answered truthfully.

"Are you sure Sara? It took you three months to get around to even asking me out after I let you know I was more than interested."

"I'm sure." Sara answered with conviction. "Three months is long enough to work out what I feel for you, don't you think? Long enough to consider all the possibilities of where this might go wrong and whether you're worth it. And you are Catherine. So yes, I can go that distance."

Catherine coloured under Sara's intense stare, her chocolate brown eyes dark with want and promise, Sara's fingers brushing lightly against her hand. "Good" she croaked out, averting her eyes for a moment to regain some composure. "Also, there's Lindsey. You know me well enough to know I will never choose you over her. She is a part of my life and you need to be able to deal with that. As we've established forever as a possibility I want you to have some role in her life. Previously I've kept Lindsey and my love life separate to protect her, but not this time."

"I can do that" Sara nodded. "Like I said, three months is long enough to think about this, and everything that might effect us. Lindsey is a great kid Cath, you've done a fantastic job with her, and I would feel privileged if you'd let me be a part of her life."

"Good" Catherine sent Sara a wide smile.

"Now I need to set some ground rules" Sara started. "I have baggage, it might not be as tangible as a child…but you have to understand that at times…the past comes back to haunt me. I have nightmares from back then, if that happens you need to leave, I don't want to hurt you. Also, sometimes there will be periods where I can't stand to be touched, it might be for just a minute it might last a few weeks. Understand that I need my space when that happens, and it's got nothing to do with you. Most of my previous relationships ended because my lovers couldn't understand this, so I need to know you know what you've getting into, ok?"

Catherine nodded slowly, "I can deal with that Sara, but I don't know if I can leave the room if you're having a nightmare." She knew she had to be honest otherwise the first time Sara had a nightmare and she didn't leave Sara would take it as an indication that they wouldn't work and she would leave Catherine.

Sara's eyes darkened as she scowled. "You have to Catherine. You don't understand how bad they get. I get lost in my head and you know enough to know it's not pretty in there."

"I don't care." Catherine insisted, "I couldn't leave you"

"I should go then" Sara stated, her jaw clenching as she turned her eyes to the ground again.

Catherine sighed, glancing up as she blinked back tears; she could almost feel her heart breaking. "You promised Lindsey you'd be here in the morning" Catherine pointed out. "I'll go and make up the spare room." Slowly she rose, unsteady on her feet. With a leaden heart she ascended the stairs.

A/N: please please please review...elsewise i won't make it better.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Alright, this is the last installment for this chapter. I have to say I'm a little disappointed in some of my readers for this one. Generally I think it's common courtesy that if you're going to put the story in alerts or in your favourites that the author, being me, deserves a review too. Other than that I would like to thank all those who did review, you guys light up my day. And as a bonus you help to repel the nasty writers block and you encourage me to get the next chapter in sooner. So thank you again. And of course thanks ot my awesome betas, Jess and Sarah. You guys are the best.

Now, on with the story. Hope you like the ending.

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Chapter 3:

Catherine woke up in the middle of the night to hear a heart breaking cry. Her first thought was Lindsey and she ran down the hall to her daughter's room but just as she got there Lindsey's door opened and the young blonde looked out, utter confusion on her face. "Mummy, why is Sara screaming?" she asked pitifully.

"She's probably having a bad dream" Catherine sighed, apprehension sinking into her heart as she pushed the door open to the guest room. "Stay here" she instructed Lindsey as she cautiously approached the bed, Sara's warnings from earlier ringing through her ears. She hadn't believed the brunette that she could be dangerous, but she wasn't prepared to risk her daughter's safety on that assumption.

Sara was thrashing in her sleep, the sheets were constricted around her tightly as she fought for her next breath. Catherine reached out tentatively, resting her hand on Sara's shoulder as she called her name. Sara flinched away from her and suddenly lashed out, pushing Catherine backwards hard. Catherine gasped as she almost fell flat on her back.

The next moment she reached a decision. Reached forward she risked being hit by Sara again so she could grab the sheets. Firmly she pulled them away from Sara, rolling the brunette in the process. As soon as the sheets stopped constricting her Sara stopped panicking. Her breathing slowly returned to normal as she settled back into sleep.

"Is Sara ok?" Lindsey asked quietly, sounding scared.

"Yeah, she's ok honey" Catherine replied with a tired smile. "She just doesn't like it when the sheets try to choke her. Go back to sleep sweetheart" Catherine moved towards the door, taking her daughters hand in her own and leading the way back down the hall.

"But you can't leave Sara on her own" Lindsey protested. "She was scared, you saw her" Lindsey made to go back to the guest room but Catherine stopped her.

"I won't leave her on her own" she promised the young girl, "I'll tuck you back into bed then I'll go back keep her company, ok?"

"Ok" Lindsey nodded yawning.

Catherine settled her daughter back into her own bed before she headed back to the guest room. For a minute she surveyed Sara's sleeping form. The brunette had borrowed a shirt and a pair of shorts to sleep in for the night and at the moment she was curled up in the foetal position. She was probably cold, Catherine reasoned, seeing as the sheet had been pulled off of her and was now lying on the floor.

Quietly she picked the sheet up and draped it over her sleeping colleague. She couldn't really consider her a friend as they had not spent time together outside work, and unfortunately now there was no hope of considering her anything more. Sighing Catherine picked up the blanket, deliberating for a moment whether or not to put it back over Sara. Deciding to just put it over her feet she hesitated a moment. Leaning forward she pressed a kiss into Sara's forehead. "I love you" she whispered quietly, tears pricking her eyes once again; she refused to let them fall.

"Cat?" Sara murmured sleepily.

Catherine stood up quickly, almost as thought she'd been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. "Go back to sleep Sara" she murmured softly.

"Cath, stay, please" Sara reached out a hand and grasped Catherine's own. "Please" Sara said again sensing Catherine's reluctance.

"Ok" Catherine sighed, crawling into bed as Sara wriggled over to make room for her.

--

Something was moving slowly across her stomach, drawing lazy circles. A hand. The hand started moving upwards and a thumb grazed the underside of her breast ever so lightly. Hot breath was tickling her ear as hot lips passed ever so lightly over it. A wet tongue was licking her ear lobe and suddenly Sara Sidle was wide awake.

"Catherine, what are you doing here?" she asked sitting up, more frustrated than angry as she mentally clamped down on her libido.

"You had a nightmare last night, and then you asked me to stay" the blonde replied as she sat up, a cocky smile on her face. In one swift move she threw a leg over Sara and was sitting straddling her, her hands wandering underneath Sara's shirt as she rocked her hips gently.

"Catherine, what are you doing?" Sara asked, closing her eyes and clenching her jaw as she ordered herself not to react. Her body betrayed her as her heart rate sped up and a hot flush pooled between her legs.

"Tell me you don't want me as much as I want you, and I'll stop" Catherine promised, certain that the brunette couldn't do it.

Sara stiffened, her eyes still closed. "I don't want you as much as you want me" she recited dutifully. Catherine sat back deflated and a moment later was surprised to find herself flat on her back, her hands pinned above her head, Sara's eyes boring into her own. "Right now I want you so much more" Sara growled, her lips inches from Catherine's.

The blonde whimpered, trying to lean upwards and capture Sara's lips with her own, sighing with frustration when the younger woman pulled back.

"What do you mean I had a nightmare last night?" Sara asked carefully.

"You were tossing and turning and crying out, you woke Lindsey and me up when you screamed" Catherine answered laying her head back down as she realised she wasn't going to get what she wanted just yet.

"Lindsey?" Sara enquired suddenly worried.

"I sent her back to bed after I got you to stop panicking, all I did was pull the sheet off you, then when I came in here to put it back on so you didn't get cold you woke up and you asked me to stay." Sara was silent, not moving from her intimate position between Catherine's legs. Her eyes fixed on the blonde in a thoughtful expression. "Damn it Sara, I can take care of myself ok?" Catherine insisted. "You have nightmares, ok, I get that. If you have them here I'll deal. If you still don't want to try this then bloody hell get off me or I will jump you"

"I don't usually manage to get back to sleep after one of those dreams," Sara whispered softly, her gaze still intent. Catherine felt her skin begin to burn as her heart beat out a tempo on her ribcage. Suddenly Sara's lips were on hers in fierce kiss, the brunette's hand releasing Catherine's and moving to cup her cheek, the other hand supporting her above her body.

Her hands free Catherine moved them to Sara's waist, her tongue running along Sara's bottom lip. Sara resisted, denying her access and pulling away a moment later. "Ok" she whispered softly.

"Ok?" Catherine enquired trying to get her breathing back under control.

"Ok…I _really_ want to do this, us." Sara elaborated, a beam spreading across her face.

--

"So, you worked out who you're taking to dinner Cath?" Warrick asked the next shift in the break room.

"Yup" Catherine smiled. She wasn't planning to tell Warrick who, just give him that, but nothing else.

"Who?" Warrick asked.

"That's for me to know and you to find out another day" Catherine answered mysteriously.

"You're not going to tell me?" Warrick asked astounded.

"Catherine?" Sara's quiet voice drew her attention. "I think the principle that applied to Lindsey applies here." She stated with conviction. Leaning forwards she whispered "If this is going to be a forever thing, don't you think the boys should know sooner rather than later?" her voice had dropped an octave causing Catherine's blood pressure to sky rocket and her eyes to widen as they glazed over. Slowly she nodded.

Sara beamed as she wrapped her arm around Catherine's waist, pulling the blonde backwards into her own body and resting her head on her shoulder. "She's taking me" she announced proudly.

--

Some people say the truth is overrated; that it's easier to get what you want with lies and deception. This is not the case. Truth is defined as a fact, an actuality or a reality. Truth is not open for interpretation. If you gain something with lies then there is no doubt you will not be able to keep it. If there is no way of getting something without lying then it is not worth having. Truth is the only way forward, even if it is what leaves us vulnerable and weak; it is also what makes us strong.

See, I even made it a happy ending and everything. Surely that means I deserve a review, pretty please?


End file.
